Life Cycle Assessment of Biobased <i>p</i>-Xylene Production

Lin, Zhaojia; Nikolakis, Vladimiros; Ierapetritou, Marianthi G.

doi:10.1021/ie5037287

Cited by 48 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…The term in Table 2 18 fructose dehydration to HMF, and humin-formation reactions. [45] Therefore, below we evaluate the possibility of improving HMF yield by adding HCl to CrCl3 in aqueous solution. Figure 6 shows that most of the humins form from either fructose (>50% from Lewis acid-catalyzed reactions) or glucose (25-40% from Lewis acid-catalyzed reactions).…”

Section: Reactionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tandem Lewis/Brønsted homogeneous acid catalysis: conversion of glucose to 5-hydoxymethylfurfural in an aqueous chromium(iii) chloride and hydrochloric acid solution

et al. 2015

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A kinetic model for the tandem conversion of glucose to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) through fructose in aqueous CrCl3-HCl solution was developed by analyzing experimental data. We show that the coupling of Lewis and Brønsted acids in a single pot overcomes equilibrium limitations of the glucosefructose isomerization leading to high glucose conversions and identify conditions that maximize HMF yield. Adjusting the HCl/CrCl3 concentration has a more pronounced effect on HMF yield at constant glucose conversion than that of temperature or CrCl3 concentration. This is attributed to the interactions between HCl and CrCl3 speciation in solution that leads to HMF yield being maximized at moderate HCl concentrations for each CrCl3 concentration. This volcano-like behavior is accompanied with a change in the rate-limiting step from fructose dehydration to glucose isomerization as the concentration of the Brønsted acid increases. The maximum HMF yield in a single aqueous phase is only modest and appears independent of catalysts' concentrations as long as they are appropriately balanced. However, it can be further maximized in a biphasic system. Our findings are consistent with recent studies in other tandem reactions catalyzed by different catalysts.

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Section: Reactionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tandem Lewis/Brønsted homogeneous acid catalysis: conversion of glucose to 5-hydoxymethylfurfural in an aqueous chromium(iii) chloride and hydrochloric acid solution

et al. 2015

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“…In their recent ′Life cycle assessment of bio‐based p ‐xylene production′, Lin et al . concluded that production of p ‐xylene starting from starch and proceeding via Diels–Alder cycloaddition of DMF and ethylene was actually still less ′environmentally friendly′ than that derived from petroleum, highlighting the need to further improvements in the efficiency and sustainability of the process.…”

Section: Cycloaddition Of Biomass‐derived Furans and Suitable Dienopmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biomass‐Derived Renewable Aromatics: Selective Routes and Outlook for p‐Xylene Commercialisation

2016

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Methylbenzenes are among the most important organic chemicals today and, among them, p-xylene deserves particular attention because of its production volume and its application in the manufacture of polyethylene terephthalate (PET). There is great interest in producing this commodity chemical more sustainably from biomass sources, particularly driven by manufacturers willing to produce more sustainable synthetic fibres and PET bottles for beverages. A renewable source for p-xylene would allow achieving this goal with minimal disruption to existing processes for PET production. Despite the fact that recently some routes to renewable p-xylene have been identified, there is no clear consensus on their feasibility or implications. We have critically reviewed the current state-of-the-art with focus on catalytic routes and possible outlook for commercialisation. Pathways to obtain p-xylene from a biomass-derived route include methanol-to-aromatics (MTA), ethanol dehydration, ethylene dimerization, furan cycloaddition or catalytic fast pyrolysis and hydrotreating of lignin. Some of the processes identified suggest near-future possibilities, but also more speculative or longer-term sources for synthesis of p-xylene are highlighted.

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“…The production of hemicellulose solutions using dilute acid hydrolysis has been previously examined in our work. 32 The economic analysis is based on the capital cost reported in Ref. 46 and scaled to first quarter of 2013 and capacity using in our simulation.…”

Section: Economic Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…45 The biomass processing utilizes dilute acid hydrolysis and the detailed descriptions and the input and output inventory can be found in Ref. 32. The other scenario starts with hemicellulose solutions from paper mill which are often burnt to produce heat.…”

Section: Life Cycle Assessmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…26 A lot of work has been done related to the C 6 sugar conversion to HMF, levulinic acid, gamma-valerolactone, etc. [27][28][29][30][31] In our previous studies, 29,30,32 we have analyzed the production of biobased p-xylene from C 6 sugar and shown that the biobased chemicals are usually more expensive than those from oil sources, but present comparable environmental impacts as oil-based chemicals. The most important components of the cost and environmental impacts come from the cultivation biomass feedstocks and its loss to low value by-products as well as the necessity of the large amounts of solvents.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Phthalic anhydride production from hemicellulose solutions: Technoeconomic analysis and life cycle assessment

2015

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The process synthesis, technoeconomic analysis, and life cycle assessment (LCA) of a novel route for phthalic anhydride (PAN) production from hemicellulose solutions are presented. The production contains six steps including dehydration of xylose to furfural, reductive decarbonylation of furfural to furan, oxidation of furfural to maleic anhydride (MA), Diels-Alder cycloaddition of furan, and MA to exo24,10-dioxa-tricyclo[5.2.1.0]dec-8-ene-3,5-dione followed by dehydration to PAN in the presence of mixture of methanesulfonic acid and acetic anhydride (AAN) which is converted to acetyl methanesulfonate and acetic acid (AAD), and dehydration of AAD to AAN. The minimum selling price of PAN is determined to be $810/metric ton about half of oil-based PAN. The coproduction of high-value products is essential to improve the economics. Biomass feedstock contributes to the majority of cost. LCA results shows that biomass-based PAN has advantages over oil-based PAN to reduce climate change and fossil depletion however requires more water usage.

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Life Cycle Assessment of Biobased p-Xylene Production

Cited by 48 publications

References 37 publications

Tandem Lewis/Brønsted homogeneous acid catalysis: conversion of glucose to 5-hydoxymethylfurfural in an aqueous chromium(iii) chloride and hydrochloric acid solution

Tandem Lewis/Brønsted homogeneous acid catalysis: conversion of glucose to 5-hydoxymethylfurfural in an aqueous chromium(iii) chloride and hydrochloric acid solution

Biomass‐Derived Renewable Aromatics: Selective Routes and Outlook for p‐Xylene Commercialisation

Phthalic anhydride production from hemicellulose solutions: Technoeconomic analysis and life cycle assessment

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